Sunday, May 13, 2007

Critical Mass smashes another windshield

An angry confrontation erupted during Friday night's Critical Mass bike ride in Berkeley when cyclists accused a motorist of trying to run them over, a participant who videotaped part of the fracas said Saturday.

But police said Saturday that participants of the monthly bike ride threw their bicycles in front of the motorist to impede him.

The incident, similar to an altercation during a Critical Mass in San Francisco in March, occurred at about 8 p.m. as dozens of cyclists rode through the intersection of The Alameda and Monterey Avenue in North Berkeley, said bicycle activist Jason Meggs.

A 72-year-old man driving the Chevrolet minivan and his 70-year-old wife were surrounded by bicyclists who rocked their vehicle, police said, adding that two witnesses told them that three riders threw their bicycles in front of the minivan to block its path.

Tempers flared on both sides and the minivan's windshield was shattered and a wiper bent, but Berkeley police did not make any arrests, said Sgt. Mary Kusmiss, department spokeswoman.

"There's nothing to suggest in the report or documentation thus far that the driver intentionally or had an intent to hit anybody," she said. "The driver and his wife, both of them were very confused and, in their words, feared for their safety being encircled by this group, who they characterized as being quite aggressive and angry."

But Meggs disputed that account, saying the man drove toward the cyclists, prompting the confrontation. On a video of the incident filmed by Meggs, cyclists are seen trying to remove three bicycles stuck beneath the right front tire of the van.

"Everybody, back away!" one person is heard shouting. Cyclists are seen and heard pounding on the vehicle's hood and windows.

"What the f -- ? What's your f -- problem?" one cyclist demands of the driver, who is inside the vehicle with the windows closed.

Firefighters at a nearby Berkeley fire station heard the commotion and summoned police because it appeared that "an angry crowd was surrounding a minivan," Kusmiss said.

Meggs said two cyclists were hurt but declined medical care.

The incident evoked comparisons to a March 30 fracas during Critical Mass in San Francisco.

In that case, Susan Ferrando of Redwood City said she found herself in the middle of a group of bicyclists and tried to drive through them. Hundreds of bicyclists surrounded her minivan, she said, pounding on it and riding in circles around it.

Eventually, she said, someone used a bicycle to smash the rear window. Some cyclists, however, say that Ferrando accelerated recklessly, hit a rider and kept driving until the bicyclists surrounded her.